Royals signed C Jorge Alfaro to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.
Alfaro spent most of last season in Triple-A for the Nationals organization, hitting 15 home runs in 82 games. He also hit .256 (10-for-39) with zero homers, three RBIs, and a 14/0 K/BB ratio with the big league club. The 32-year-old has a .692 career OPS with a 27% caught stealing rate over parts of nine MLB seasons.